The present invention relates to printing units. These printing units are part of an offset printing press with two forme cylinders, two transfer cylinders and a counter-pressure cylinder. Two of these printing units are arranged opposite each other.
A rotary offset printing press in a satellite construction is known from DE-GM 73 22 211. Here, a web of material, for example, is printed by a ten cylinder printing unit and a nine cylinder printing unit. It is not disclosed to let the ten cylinder printing unit produce as a nine cylinder printing unit.
The reference manual xe2x80x9cRollenoffset, Technik, Systeme, Maschinen xe2x80x9d Cylinder Offset, Technology, Systems, Presses, Oscar Frei, Polygraph, publ., 1979, discloses, on page 10, a combination of two five cylinder satellite printing units.
DE 43 03 904 A1 and DE 19 24 455 A1 both disclose printing units whose cylinders are arranged in the form of a letter xe2x80x9cWxe2x80x9d.
EP 0 638 419 A1 describes a printing press, wherein printing units are fastened on a support frame. Individual modular units, such as ink units or cylinder groups, for example, can be displaced in the direction of the cylinder axes.
DE 34 46 619 A1 shows a printing press, in which two movable groups of presses are described. However, these groups are only provided with four plate cylinders, to each of which an ink and dampening unit is assigned. Rubber blanket cylinders and counter-pressure cylinders are installed in a stationary press group.
U.S. Pat No. 3,289,580 discloses a printing unit with two forme cylinders and two transfer cylinders, wherein a pair of transfer cylinders and forme cylinders is each seated in a lateral wall. The lateral wall of oppositely located pairs of cylinders are displaceable, so that the distance between two transfer cylinders working together can be changed.
EP 0 429 852 A1 shows printing units with work platforms located between them.
The present invention is based on the object of creating printing units.
This object is attained in accordance with the invention by providing printing units of an offset press with at least two forme cylinders, two transfer cylinders and a counter-pressure cylinder. Two of these printing units are arranged opposite to each other and their spacing distance can be varied. The presses print one or more webs when they are spaced apart at either of two spacing distances. Two of the printing units can be arranged on top of each other.
It is possible, in an advantageous manner, to perform a plurality of types of production by use of the printing units of the invention. For example, two five cylinder printing units can produce either individually or can produce together as a ten cylinder printing unit. In particular, two five cylinder printing units, each with different cylinder arrangements, can be used as a nine cylinder printing unit. The modular construction of the present invention permits the identical arrangement of the printing units; the modular construction kit consists of only two basic elements.
Here, the modular units can be combined in two ways. In a first way, one modular unit operates as an individual printing unit independently of a second one, while in a second way, two modular units are combined into a common printing unit. A placement reversed by 180xc2x0, with a shifting of the drive mechanism side and the operating side, is also possible. Thus, the drive mechanisms for the printing units are not arranged on a single side of the printing press. Instead, the drive mechanisms remain fixedly assigned to a lateral frame.
The ink systems also remain the same. A reversal of the direction of rotation is not necessary, since the combination of the modular units and their flexible assignment make possible 4/4, 4/2, 2/4 and 2/2 production requirements. Because of the possibility of movable printing units, operation from the inside is possible. This operation from inside is advantageous with xe2x80x9cWxe2x80x9d printing units in particular, because no release devices are therefore necessary.
By means of displaceable printing units, it is also possible to produce, by means of spaced-apart five cylinder printing units, as well as with two coupled five cylinder printing units, wherein respectively different types of production are possible.
If only a 4/2 or 2/4 production is desired, no xe2x80x9cempty framesxe2x80x9d of a satellite printing unit are necessary, since it is possible to arrange a singly arranged five cylinder printing unit to operate together with a four-color-producing satellite printing unit (ten or nine cylinder printing unit).
The placement of work platforms which can be raised and lowered in the intermediate frames and at the modular cylinder units makes the easy operation of the printing units possible.